Job Discussion Forums

[McMurphy]

Question: What percentage of Bushiban type jobs make you work on Saturdays? A recruitor has told me that nearly all jobs include Saturdays. (Please don't just bitch and moan about recruitors in replies).

This same recruitor also said that you get paid about 20% more in Taipei, I've heard this is untrue, can someone please clarify this. (I realise the cost of living would be higher in Taipei).

Thank you.

[Aristotle]

First never believe your recruiter, they are Taiwanese/ Chinese business people and have a hard time talking about anything without lying. Don't listen so much to what they do tell you compared to what they don't tell you.
I have not worked on Saturdays for about four years. When my boss asked me to work on Saturdays, I ask them for time and a half over time pay, triple time for Sundays and holidays.
This approach works well because it is not an in your face "NO WAY" and it is perfectly rational in money terms that the employer can understand. I have only had one employer who has agreed to pay over time. I told him he would have to pay me every Saturday for that day's work. He backed out because as I found out later, he had no intention of paying me at all.
Taiwan EFL/ESL is a teacher's market. Keep your options open and you can set your own schedule and always get paid.
Good Luck,
A.

[WorkingVaca]

I work at both children's and adult language schools and they are flexible with the hours. I've never asked for overtime because I only work about 25-30 hours a week as it is. And if I don't want to work at certain times of the day or the weekend, I can just say so.

I interviewed at a lot of places before accepting my current jobs however, and turned down offers where it wasn't clear what hours they expected. Just ask a lot of questions during the interview.

[brian]

Working on Saturdays has always been pretty commonplace here in Taiwan, regardless of whether you are teaching kids or adults. The fact is that Saturdays is about the only time that some people can have classes, and as schools are a business, it is a good opportunity to make some money. As far as kids go there seems to be less emphasis on Saturday classes since government schools stopped having Saturday morning classes a few years back.

The choice to work on Saturdays or not is yours. If you really dont want to work on Saturday then just make this clear to your recruiter and/or during the interview process. Dont accept a position on terms that will see you working on Saturday for a short term or every other Saturday. The reason for this is that you can be pretty sure that once you accept some weekend work, you will find the requirement to take on more and more.

On the other hand if you want to earn some more money then go for the Saturday work, but you should expect that you will be paid the standard hourly rate that you are getting for your weekday hours.

There is no signifiant difference in what you can earn per hour working in either a big city or a small town. Different schools offer different pay rates, but location doesnt seem to play a big part in this. The differences generally arise in the package that you are offered and the costs of living. Many schools in small towns will throw in free accomodation, scooter and other benefits. In the big city you tend to just get your hourly rate. The cost of food etc. is cheaper in small cities as is the limited entertainment. Watch out for imported goods though that either may not be available where you are or only at a price. Once again, personal choice as far as city or country, but overall salaries will be approximately equal.